FlyerTalk Forums - Trip Reports

FlyerTalk Forums - Trip Reports http://www.flyertalk.com/forum en Sat, 21 Nov 2009 03:11:50 GMT vBulletin 60 http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/images/misc/rss.jpg FlyerTalk Forums - Trip Reports http://www.flyertalk.com/forum EVA Airways: BR67 TPE-BKK-LHR in Premium Economy http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-reports/1019130-eva-airways-br67-tpe-bkk-lhr-premium-economy.html Fri, 20 Nov 2009 22:22:50 GMT *Flight* DEP TPE 09:10 15NOV BR67 ARR BKK 11:50 15NOV BR67 DEP BKK 13:10 15NOV BR67 ARR LHR 19:10 15NOV BR67 TPE is 1 hour ahead of BKK and 8 hours ahead of LHR at this time of year. For this flight, EVA used a 777-300ER (77W in their... Flight
DEP TPE 09:10 15NOV BR67
ARR BKK 11:50 15NOV BR67
DEP BKK 13:10 15NOV BR67
ARR LHR 19:10 15NOV BR67

TPE is 1 hour ahead of BKK and 8 hours ahead of LHR at this time of year.

For this flight, EVA used a 777-300ER (77W in their timetable). It is configured as:

42 seats of 61" Premium Laurel (C) class in 2-2-2 configuratoin split into two cabins. Front - 24 seats. Rear - 18 seats.
63 seats of 38" Elite (Premium Economy) class in 1 row of 2-3-2 then 8 rows of 2-4-2
211 seats of 33" Economy (Y) class, mostly 3-3-3 with some 2-3-2 near the galleys.

For my report on LHR-TPE BR68, see here: http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-...m-economy.html

Booking
This was the return journey of a flight booked through an agent in London. I was booked into Elite (Fare class Q).

Increasingly I'm finding getting a seat allocated the worst part of dealing with EVA. I'm gold in EVA's club. I like an aisle seat near the front but was unable to get anything but a middle seat through the online allocation system. Between when I first tried (probably about 3 weeks in advance) and the date of the flight, the online system either just offered a single middle seat or said that online allocation was unavailable and a seat would be allocated at check-in. 32 of 63 Elite seats are aisle seats.

EVA's call centre in TPE got me 26C (aise near the back) a couple of weeks before the flight. A few days before the flight they were still unable to do anything better. I asked if I could use miles to upgrade - they said I could but they could not allocate an aisle seat. Since 28 of 42 PL seats on a 777 are aisle seats this sounded unlikely to me. (Especially as the remainder are window seats which many prefer.)

I got a Chinese speaker to phone customer services about the Elite seat. No problem - a number of seats are available. They allocated me 20D. They explained that it wouldn't show online, but that it was now guaranteed for me.

I really think EVA need to sort out their allocation system. It seems they now hold back so many seats from their online system/usual call centre that getting one you like is a problem in Elite - even if you go online exactly 100 days before your flight (which is when it opens) and/or are gold with them. As for PL - the cabin had plenty of aisle seats empty for both sectors - so they should have had no problem allocating one to me. I could have understood it if they'd said that they had no availability for upgrades (hoping still to sell the seats), but again it seems their allocation system just locks up too many seats.

Pre-Boarding
I arrived at TPE rather early at 0650. EVA dominates T2 but there is a separate check-in row for FFs and business class that starts by one of the main entrances to the building. If you are arriving by car then it will likely stop by this entrance as it is labelled with EVA's logo. There is just one desk for diamonds (in addition to the little-used diamond check-in lounge). Else you must enter the correct taped off lane depending whether you are flying PL or are gold. Silver check-in is round the other side. I find the tapes an unnecessary annoyance - I've rarely seen a queue and it just looks bad in the context of providing a supposedly premium service. There were a number of vacant desks but no obvious way of avoid the lanes. So I zig-zagged my way through until I reached the front and was then swiftly checked-in. I was handed the BP for London and two lounge invites - one for TPE and one for BKK where the flight makes a short stop. BR TPE now uses generic paper for all classes. No special colours for the different classes. In fact it doesn't say "Elite" anywhere. There was a large letter "Y" printed on the BP. I think PLs get "C" and Economy flyers get "K".

If you are not silver, gold or in PL class, you have to find the right area to check-in using the screens. Within each area they generally have seperate desks for Elite class.

Your checked baggage is x-rayed at the end of the conveyor that runs behind the desks. This is great - you can watch it go through and if there are any problems they can be dealt with then.

After a slightly longer than usual line at security and zero queues at immigration I went up the steps and arrived at the lounges at 07:05, 15 mins after getting out of the car. If you don't have lounge access there are some eateries nearby, the More pay-lounge, or you can stay downstairs and mill around the duty free shops.

EVA have 3 lounges - an open air "garden" and two conventional style lounges, "the Diamond" and "the Business". Since "the Diamond" and the garden are only available to Diamond card holders, "the Business" can get overcrowded and getting upgraded to either "the Diamond" or the garden is not uncommon. The garden has it's own reception desk. Opposite it is short hall with a reception desk at the end with 2 or 3 staff. They will direct you either left to "the Business" or right to "the Diamond".

There is a thread all about TPE "lounge insanity" at http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/other...-insanity.html

No upgrade for me this time - I was in "the Business". There is a single shower which I've never used and a popular games room. Most of it is open plan with mostly low chairs and tables but also some standard chairs and tables so you can sit up and eat properly if you like. WiFi works well, but you get a log-in screen on your browser which you bypass. I also had a couple of security-type warnings from my browser but I've long since stopped worrying about such things.

I really can't grumple about the food - more than one type of noodle, chinese buns, hot dogs, salad, tortilla + salsa dip, tuna sandwiches, toast/butter/jam, rolls, cereals, roast potato pieces, hot sweet potato, crackers and cheese, yoghurt, decent coffee, a variety of herbal teas, soft drinks and booze of various types. I've used all EVA's lounges and the choice is different in each one. The "Diamond" probably has less food choice but is more refined. The garden has a proper waiter service and barman.

The only problem with the "Business" is the ambience - noisy and you're just too close to other people. I ended up with a bizarre chap sitting opposite me - looked like Gary Glitter on his release complete with goaty beard, but with headphones that made him look like a cyberman. He downed 2 beers and poured the third onto the carpet. He wore a tracksuit and kept bobbing about trying to engage others in what ever rhythm he was in to. He'd occasionally blurt out a "yeah man", bang his foot on the floor or clap his hands.

By 0745 the lounge was full - probably if I'd arrived later I would have got a better lounge. By 0815 it was thinning out rapidly. A Taiwanese girl sat next to cyber-glitter only to be leered at. She promptly moved on. At 0830 I left - boarding was scheduled for 0840.

It's a short walk to gate C7 - down an escalator, past some unexciting duty-free shops and a right turn. About 5 minutes in total. If you're into duty free shopping, I don't think TPE is the place to do it. As I was on the way to the gate an annoucement was made that boarding would be delayed by 15 minutes to 0855 because of ground handing problems. I worked my way to the front of the gate in anticipation of priority boarding.

At 0855 boarding started, but C class only. Usually they board C class and golds/diamonds together but this time it was C class only first. At 0900 diamonds/golds were boarded.

TPE-BKK
I took up 20D which is the front row of the Elite cabin. No babies today, fortunately. We pushed back at 09:25 and were airborne by 09:35. After reaching cruising altitude, a deputy purser came over to me and introduced herself and thanked me for flying with EVA again. They do this for golds and diamonds. Though well-meaning, I find it awkward. She did go beyond the normal thing and asked if I needed any magazines, duty frees etc., or would I like a drink? I was fine.

It's just over 3 hours flying time to Bangkok. PL (C class) looked about 30% full, Elite was 90% full, Economy was about 70% full. 45 mins into the flight the meal service sorted. Chicken potato or fish with rice. I went for fish with rice and it was pretty good. Generally I go for "fish" or "seafood" if offered - I find the quality is usually better than for other dishes in Elite. My neighbour had chicken and it did look OK. As I mentioned in my BR68 trip report, the Elite meal service is more of an upgraded Economy service rather than a downgraded Business class service. You generally get an extra dish (eg a salad) compared with Economy and the overall quality is up a notch. The meal came with a fruit dish consisting of star fruit and orange, a celery/lettuice/kidney bean salad with japanese dressing and a roll and butter. The usual beers and wine (red or white) were offered.

There was no top up for the wine, but I was singled out for being offered another glass when the trolley reappeared. A few fellow pax then asked for more too. There was a coffee or tea round and top ups were offered. A little later I was again asked if I needed more wine.

I should add that where pax press the call button and ask for extra drinks, this is always cheerfully dealt with. EVA FAs are all females and are mostly Taiwanese. They have a few other asians too - I've seen Vietnamese and Thais. I think it's fair to say the English isn't as good as you get on CX or SQ, but it's certainly good enough and in some cases excellent.

As usual I decided not to use the VOD system. Sometimes I watch my own films, but this time I needed to work on something. I really like having laptop power. This combined with the 38" pitch can make for a comfortable and productive flight. Just as I was plugging in I heard a slight commotion... it was cyber-glitter! I hadn't noticed him on board.. it seems he was trying to get into Elite to use the toilet and didn't appreciate he wasn't supposed to.

I've noticed that EVA pilots often now make no annoucements until descent is about to commence. Just as the captain came on the FAs did a round with a tray and soft drinks (apple juice, orange juice or water). I've not seen this before on short haul flights.

We started our descent at 11:15 BKK time, were on the ground at 11:45 and at gate E6 at 11:50.

Lounge
On leaving the aircraft I collected a transit card and made my way through security and into the EVA lounge on concourse F. See my earlier report http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-...m-economy.html - the experience was indistinguishable from last time, except I stayed until they called the flight. It is a bit silly that EVA's lounge is in F but they usually seem to get a gate in E.

I arrived back at the gate just as mainstream boarding started.

BKK-LHR
I was welcomed aboard by a new crew that would be taking us to LHR. When I got to 20D, it was already occupied by an elderly British chap. He'd got the seat wrong and should have been in 20G. He was very sorry and moved, but he'd pretty much filled the locker with his stuff and didn't bother to move it. I didn't make an issue of it and didn't feel like moving it myself as with people passing through the aisle it would have been a palava.

Elite was almost full, Economy probably about 70%. PL I would guess under half full. The rear PL cabin only had 4 seats occupied out of 18, though of ocurse the front cabin is more popular.

I didn't notice whether we took off on time, I suppose we did. About 30 minutes into the flight the FAs did a snack run. They always used to do this, but it was missing from BR68 LHR-BKK a little while earlier. Some Japanese rice crackers, napkin and a cold drink (beer available). Then an FA came over and did the "gold cardholder" introduction. She and her colleagues addressed me by name throughout the rest of the flight. I feel they were making a real effort. She asked me if I wanted anything just to let her know. I requested a bottle of water which she delivered to me inside a duty free bag. Presumably this was to prevent a deluge of copycat requests.

The meal service started almost immediately - pork with rice or beef with potato. I went for the beef and it was cubes of beef with mashed potato, carrots and something else I now forget. I didn't really like it - the potato was dry and the beef chewy. Also delivered was blackcurrent cheese cake (jolly good), fruit (papaya, guava), salad with ham and a roll and butter. The usual drinks were available - red or white, beer, soft drinks. Top ups were offered rather belatedly and combined with a coffee/tea run. Trays were eventually collected combined with a coffee/tea top up run. All-in-all efficiently done, but of the 6 meals of my return trip, this was the weakest because of the chewy beef.

Now a note about the seat. I can't really recommend 20D even without the babies. I think you do get a little less legroom (the divider between Elite and PL is in front of you) and you suffer a little because of the curtain. Most inter-cabin walkers part the curtain, walk through the gap created and let the curtain close behind them. Some carry this off with great aplomb. A minority (including an FA) has a different technique. They stand just short of the curtain and then whisk it to one side and behind them in a great flourish as they then proceed through. If you have exposed skin (face, elbow etc) at best you will feel a chill because of the disturbance, or at worse you will feel the brush of polyester on your skin. I mused as to whether there had ever been an incident of "curtain rage".

The lights were dimmed and pax asked to close the blinds. The flight runs in daylight almost all the way to London, all the way in the summer months. Most people slept and it was a very quiet flight. There seemed to be fewer British travellers than usual - a number of Taiwanese going all the way as well as other asians that started in Bangkok.

The crew did regular trips offering juice to those awake. They also did a snack run - crackers or chocolate biscuits. A little later they offered a tray of rolls - I had what appeared to be a chicken and pickle sandwich.

At 5pm London time, the second meal service started. Seafood spaghetti or Pork noodle. I went for the seafood spaghetti and it was very good. Some prawns, squid, scallop and crab sticks. There was also fruit, roll and butter, a cupcake and mixed fruit yoghurt. Usual choice of booze offered and top-ups were offered combined with collecting the trays. They were sluggish collecting the trays as they served Economy after Elite. They did a separate coffee/tea run later.

We were running early and started to descend at 18:15 but were warned that on landing a gate might not be available. However, miraculously we landed at 18:50 and were at the gate at 19:00.

Arrivals
LHR T3 was very quiet, no lines for immigration including non-EU. I walked straight through to baggage just as the first luggage including my "club" tagged suitcase arrived. I was in arrivals at 19:15, just 5 minutes after our scheduled arrival time and 25 minutes after the wheels hitting the runway. Probably a record.

I should warn first timers on BR67 that LHR is not always so welcoming. Immigration lines can be very long for ]]> Trip Reports jimbo99 http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-reports/1019130-eva-airways-br67-tpe-bkk-lhr-premium-economy.html Virgin America First Class LAX/SEA + pics http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-reports/1019026-virgin-america-first-class-lax-sea-pics.html Fri, 20 Nov 2009 17:15:09 GMT I don't see trip reports for Virgin America very often here on FT (especially the ones with pics ;) ), so I've decided to do one.

On my recent trip to Seattle, Significant Bliss and I decided to try Virgin America. We'd always wanted to try them, but it's so hard giving up earning miles! We thought we might as well try them on semi-short flights like these so we wouldn't be giving up too many miles.

The check in lobby was pretty cool, but I'd seen their check in areas before since they used to be next to UA's premier lobby at LAX T6. The area was pretty empty. We went to one of the kiosks and printed our cool square-shaped boarding pass. There was no premium security line at T3 :td:. However, the line was pretty empty on a Friday evening, so we breezed through it in no time.

We picked up something to munch on and went to the gate ~40 minutes before departure. They had already started boarding! We boarded and settled into our seats in first class:

The young and friendly FA came to offer predeparture beverage of our choice (VX:1, UA:0). They had a variety of premium non-alcoholic as well as alcoholic beverages that other airlines do not offer on domestic routes. They had things like bubbly, sake in cute bottles, and premium iced teas (honest abe). I asked for a Pomegranate Honest Tea:

The FAs came to chat for a bit. It's SO refreshing to see people our age running the aircraft ^ After a few minutes, the FAs went to the couple in front and offered them beverages. The couple informed the FA that it was their anniversary so the FA congratulated them and came out with 2 nice small bottles (cute bottles too!) of sake to surprise them.

A young pilot and the first officer (30s, FO in his 20s.) came out and greeted the passengers personally ^ (This happened on both flights...They also do that on Jetblue...love the personal touch) He said they would try to leave early because that's what VX does :p We left the gate shortly after.

Upon cruising, the FA quickly came to take our drink orders, showed us how to use the red entertainment system, and offered our dinner choices:

The choices were either pork medallions with roasted potato, broccolini, and apple with fig or eggplant ratatouille topped with oven baked melted cheese. I picked the former and had a chance to play with the seat

The seats were the latest generation of the ricaro seats that Delta uses for their 757-200 BusinessElite (their version of the p.s. flights). The seats were identical to Delta with a couple of modifications (remote control added). I normally find the Delta seats to be pretty comfortable so I naturally LUV'd VX's version. After watching a few minutes of live TV, the FA came with our meal:

I picked the pork tenderloin while significant bliss ordered the ratatouille. I was initially disappointed with the fact that no salad was served but quickly realized that on such a short flight (900 miles), who else would serve meals that look and taste as good as this? I was happy with my selection, but the ratatouille was even better! Hot, melted cheese all over the top with nice garnishes. I don't remember having a delicious meal ever on a domestic flight.

Dessert came separately with coffee and a creative and fastastic presentation of cream and sugar. The dessert was a french blueberry pastry with vanilla bean custard sauce.

I was thoroughly impressed with their attention to detail on the little things. The presentation was fantastic! They also had the cutest salt and pepper shaker ever! It's a little airplane that splits open with salt and pepper on each side. Adorable!

After the meal, we watched some more TV, played some games on the IFE unit. The FAs came by very often to offer beverages and snacks. Before we knew it, we landed at SEA.

Overall, I was very impressed with Virgin America. They are without a doubt the airline that offers the best domestic first class product (except for Delta's new BusinessElite service between LAX/SFO/JFK because DL offers a true international business class experience). The service was fantastic and amenities were excellent.

If only they had a frequent flyer program thats based on miles with a strong international alliance...

(To see more pictures of Virgin America first class and other pictures of mine, go to http://www.flickr.com/photos/dunkindonuts/) or click on the link in my signature.) ]]> Trip Reports BlissWorld http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-reports/1019026-virgin-america-first-class-lax-sea-pics.html Virgin America Inaugural SFO to FLL Nov 18, 2009 http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-reports/1018518-virgin-america-inaugural-sfo-fll-nov-18-2009-a.html Thu, 19 Nov 2009 01:38:17 GMT Virgin America Inaugural SFO to FLL Nov 18, 2009 Just an amazing experience and Virgin America has thrown an extravagant party here at Fort Lauderdale! This inaugural flight will always have a special place in my heart because an airline is... Virgin America Inaugural SFO to FLL Nov 18, 2009

Just an amazing experience and Virgin America has thrown an extravagant party here at Fort Lauderdale! This inaugural flight will always have a special place in my heart because an airline is rarely willing to spend much money and not to mention the efforts in planning such a huge welcoming party. It truly combines its hip and youth image with this traditionally conservative industry. Not sure if words are sufficient to explain the whole experience. Enjoy the link to the photo album and feel free to ask questions!

November 18, 2009
VX 340 SFO-FLL Lv0700 Arr1530 Airbus A319-100 N521VA “let there be flight”
http://share.shutterfly.com/action/w...8QbNHDNy5bqPgQ

This trip is definitely not cheap by any means! The introductory fare does not apply to this flight and I paid $300+ to fly into this flight and later more money to upgrade to Main Cabin Select the evening before. I will have comments about the fares towards the end of this email.

I arrived SFO about 5:30am and there was a dedicated Fort Lauderdale check in desk next to the first class line. I saw a sheet detailing seating assignments of various guests. First Class was closed off completely and my last minute attempt to upgrade to first class failed, but at least I got MCS. Security was quiet and there were only a few flights departing from Terminal A at these early hours including an Aeromexico Boeing 737-700 winglet, XA-GOL, heading to Mexico City, and a few more Virgin flights to JFK and Las Vegas.

Typically, Virgin America and other inaugural flights use A12 to celebrate special occasions, and the theme was “Stay Golden,” as seen by this giant balloon display at the gate. There is a continental breakfast buffet including sliced fruits and breakfast pastries, hot beverages, juices and bottled waters. There is a three men band playing tropical/Floridian music and after the usual speeches by various representatives from SFO and City Hall, and David Cush. There was a ribbon-cutting ceremony by David Cush, the cockpit crew and inflight team were there to cut the ribbons. Boarding began at 6:45am and the loading was around 70-80% full and mostly Virgin American staffs, as expected. Each seat had a gift bag sponsored by W Fort Lauderdale, Bare Essentials, Patron’s Tequilla, Veev acai liqueur, FLL tourism board and Virgin America. I took photos of the gift bags and you can see the contents by the end of my photo album. Boarding was completed in fifteen minutes and we closed our door on time at 7am and pushed back a minute later. Not a busy morning here at SFO! We took off from R/W1L at 7:10am. Flying time was four hours and fifty-three minutes with an initial cruising attitude of 31,000feet, and then slowly climbed to 37,000feet and 39,000feet. The routing took us over San Jose, Bakersfield, and then slowly turns SE as we passed Palmdale, CA, and further towards Arizona, Texas, and Louisiana coast. We entered Gulf Of Mexico briefly before entering the Floridian west coast, city of Naples, and a straight in approach into Fort Lauderdale. Strong tail wind all the way to FLL!

In-flight service was special with complimentary food and drinks to everyone. The other surprise was free makeup sessions, courtesy of Bare Essentials. There was a make-up artist on board and giving everyone a possible “Golden Glow” in preparation for our arrival. That is very creative and the service proved to be quite popular. Breakfast was a choice of the Bagel with yogurt and fruit, Chicken Pesto Hand roll or the Vietnamese Banh mi flat iron beef steak sandwich. The special cocktails include a Virgin Mary (Bloody Mary), a Patron mixed drink, a Veev la Vida cocktail and various beers. Tequilla shots were quite popular mid-flight and they ran out of it by the time we reached the city of Houston/Texan coast. The spirit was high and flight attendant, Mark, led a stress-relieving parade through the aircraft and the F/As were excited about the new flight. Marc, Mark and Brianna (Sorry I forgot the other F/A name) – all four of them were excellent and refills occurred throughout the flight. Marc dropped by the Main Cabin Select a few times to make sure we all got our drinks. The other surprise was towards the end of the flight, when Brianna gave out the Golden ticket – a pair of free tickets to anywhere VX flies. I was honored to win the Golden ticket and hopefully can use it for my next Virgin America inaugural flight. Thanks for choosing me! The flight went by very quickly and I was glad to report that the Direct TV was working fine and the inflight gogo internet was functioning relatively well. It was a bit slow towards mid-flight due to the increased usage, but I was more than satisfied with the speed.

Descent soon began at 2:34pm EST and we landed at R/W9L at 3:03pm. Of course it was no coincident that the Virgin flight from LAX landed after our flight. N528VA “Fog Cutter” followed us to the special hangar area. It took a while to taxi because we were not heading to the expected Terminal One Concourse C, but towards an open area outside of Terminal Four Concourse H. There were a water salute and sorry for no pictures because I did not get the window seat this time. Then I saw a giant tent literally filled with people welcoming us to FLL. This party was nothing I have seen before. Red carpets rolled out and both flights deplaned at the same time. Waiters and waitresses wearing Virgin America t-shirts were welcoming us with canapés and cocktails. There was a full bar setup, as well as a DJ booth and various golden themed armchairs and sofas. The media was buzzing and was definitely excited to see Sir Richard Branson. More speeches were made as expected and all passengers were welcome to the party. They even had a luggage check area for all our bags. I could not resist on having a few more cocktails. I did not recall any other occasions that I started to drink at 7 in the morning, not to mention four cocktails by 4pm. I spent about an hour in the tent, and as the crowd began to thin out, I headed back to the terminal. I took a few more pictures and was glad to report that Virgin will indeed be using Terminal Two Concourse C. C6 and C9 are the specific gates used today and C9 is possibly a VX exclusive gate. The check-in counters were set up according to the usual VX standard – self-check-in kiosks, First Class and Main cabin select line, and web bag drop off line. Today’s inaugural flights use Claim 3, but not sure if that is the future baggage claim carousel used.

Just an amazing experience and thanks Virgin America for a wonderful flight! I am pretty sure my next inaugural flight will not be as fun as Virgin America. For future inaugural attendants, I recommend flying the first outbound flight because the return passengers from FLL to LAX/SFO flights are not able to join the same fun party that we received in our arrivals.

Carfield ]]> Trip Reports Carfield http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-reports/1018518-virgin-america-inaugural-sfo-fll-nov-18-2009-a.html A first for everything - SQ/NH/OZ/UA F/C/Y around Asia http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-reports/1018301-first-everything-sq-nh-oz-ua-f-c-y-around-asia.html Wed, 18 Nov 2009 15:28:10 GMT *Index* *Table of Contents:* 1. Intro (http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-reports/1018301-first-everything-sq-nh-oz-ua-f-c-y-around-asia-post12840568.html#post12840568) 2. London to Singapore, SQ C (http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-reports/1018301-first-everything-sq-nh-oz-ua-f-c-y-around-asia-post12840720.html#post12840720) 3. InterContinental Singapore... Index

Table of Contents:
1. Intro
2. London to Singapore, SQ C
3. InterContinental Singapore
4. Singapore to Nagoya, SQ C, and on to Sapporo, NH Y
5. Like a plane, but on the ground
6. The Strings by InterContinental, Tokyo
7. Narita to Incheon, OZ F
8. COEX InterContinental, Seoul
9. Incheon to Hong Kong, OZ C
10. InterContinental Hong Kong
11. Hong Kong to Singapore, UA F
12. Crowne Plaza Changi
13. Singapore to London, SQ F

Full disclosure: This trip was only possible thanks to the good people and wealth of information on FT. So I thought I'd try and give something back. I'm not a frequent long-haul traveller, never mind in premium classes. I earn my miles on short-haul economy, and through some of bmi's legendary generosity (3000 miles for a 6 question survey anyone? How about 12 issues of The Economist and 9000 miles for £12?). So some of my opinions may be coloured by the wild-eyed innocence of an F newbie... It's also my first TR. And finally, I tried to take plenty of photos, but occasionally I forgot, and I don't have a thick enough skin to break out the SLR and start running amok with it. So there is a slightly odd selection of photos, some of which are a bit dodgy, and mixed between my SLR, my better half's point and shoot, and my camera phone. But I'm sure you'll get the idea. ]]> Trip Reports raikje http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-reports/1018301-first-everything-sq-nh-oz-ua-f-c-y-around-asia.html My JetQuay Experience (SIN) – A Walk To Remember http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-reports/1017813-my-jetquay-experience-sin-walk-remember.html Tue, 17 Nov 2009 12:51:09 GMT What Is JetQuay?

The JetQuay CIP Terminal is an elite airport terminal at Singapore's Changi Airport which opened in September 2006. Passengers who use JetQuay receive a personalized service that includes check in, immigration and baggage clearance. Our team will handle your travel formalities while you make use of the CIP Terminal facilities and you need only arrive at the airport one hour before your flight departs.

From: http://www.jetquay.com.sg

Pre-Trip Booking

An early morning departure from SIN after a whirlwind tour of Asia presented a great opportunity to try out JetQuay. Rather than wake up at some ungodly hour to make my way to the airport, I could arrive the evening before and get a good night’s sleep in one of their nap rooms...and still comfortably make my 7AM flight back to Sydney.

Communication via email was a breeze and a quote of SGD$125 for the Quayside Departure service was received within 24 hours. Booking was secured by reply email but a slight miscommunication resulted in a higher SGD$150 price being listed on my confirmation – rectified by a quick reply with the original quote attached.

The week before my trip, an opportunity came up for a daytrip up to Kuala Lumpur so another quick email was all it took to arrange to be met off my return flight to Singapore.

My JetQuay Experience

My flight from Kuala Lumpur arrived around 8:30PM at Terminal 2 and as expected I was met by a JetQuay employee with a name board. Strangely, there was no electric buggy present...as it turns out the entrance to the CIP terminal is no more than five meters walk from the gate. Having checked-in that morning (at the same time as for my flight up to Kuala Lumpur), I was looking forward to ending my trip smoothly.

Upon entering JetQuay, you are required to clear Immigration even if you are only transiting. I was somewhat taken aback since one of the best things about Changi Airport is the ease of transit and transfers...meaning no Immigration clearance is normally necessary.

Once in the terminal proper the double-storied lobby is most tastefully appointed but the atmosphere was somewhat lessened by a group of airport staff lounging around a sofa cluster. Although I only passed through briefly, it was not the best first impression.

After a brief guided tour of the facilities including a modest buffet, nap rooms, private meeting rooms and mini-gym it was time for a shower. There are two sets of showers – one by the mini-gym and the other by the bathrooms. Being closer to the gym, I chose the closest shower room only to find out that there was no hot water...even after waiting for ten minutes. Thankfully, the showers by the main bathrooms had a reasonable supply of hot water so the day was saved.

Wireless internet is available throughout the CIP terminal in addition to quite a few computers made available for guest use. Probably due to low usage the speed was consistently fast and surfing the web was a breeze.

Feeling like a little supper, I approached the buffet to discover that the only hot food on offer was instant noodles in chicken, curry or tom yum flavours. While it would be unreasonable to expect the quality to surpass the food offering at Qantas’ First Class Lounge in Sydney (Neil Perry menu, Sofitel staff) one would at least hope that it would be better than the KrisFlyer Gold Lounge in Terminal 3. One saving grace is that the (instant) noodles are cooked to order and served promptly.

Fruit Plate, Qantas First Class Lounge (Sydney, T1)

Refreshments, KrisFlyer Gold Lounge (Singapore, T3)

By this time, the lounge had filled up...with a rather boisterous group of 15 people gathered around the buffet (which doubles as the bar). From the looks of things, they had just attended a conference and the atmosphere would be familiar to those who have experienced Friday drinks back at the office.

So I decided to have my noodles delivered to my pre-reserved nap room (the four other rooms remained empty) and then settle in for the evening. The room was probably the best part of the lounge, quiet and comfortable (the bed particularly)...perfect for a good night’s rest.

The next morning a knock on the door at precisely 5:30AM woke me up...just as requested. An invigorating shower (having remembered the lesson from the previous evening) was followed by a bowl of Koko Krunch cereal for breakfast...again there was a dearth of hot food on offer.

By now it was 6:15AM and time for me to settle the bill and finally try out the electric buggy to the departure gate. What should have been a simple transaction ended up taking over 20 minutes as the staff fumbled about first with the final pricing (they couldn’t find my quote), then with printing the invoice (they couldn’t figure out how to just print the third page of a MS Word document) and finally with charging my credit card (they couldn’t figure out how to print out the customer copy of the receipt).

Worse still the final bill came to over SGD$250...as a transit passenger you are apparently charged both the Quayside Arrival AND Departure fees (SGD$110 and SGD$150 respectively, plus tax). With approximately 20 minutes before my flight there was no time to dispute this since at the gates close 10 minutes before departure and I was told that the buggy ride over to Terminal 3 could take up to 15 minutes.

The buggy ride itself was an enjoyable novelty, though the foot traffic in Terminal 2 and 1 (which you have to pass through in order to reach Terminal 3) made progress quite tedious.

Thankfully, I just made my flight back to Sydney.

Postscript

I emailed the JetQuay reservations team upon my return to Sydney and received a prompt response to the billing issues outlined above. A goodwill refund of SGD$25 (the difference between the SGD$150 charged and SGD$125 quoted for the Quayside Departure service) was offered.

While I appreciate the minor correction to the bill, it would have been nice to have known that by requesting to be met at the gate on arrival an additional charge of SGD$110 applies. Quite possibly the most expensive five meter walk I have ever undertaken.

When I made this known to JetQuay, an apology was forthcoming with the assurance that in future they will let customers know when there will be an additional charge. And lastly “We look forward to be of service to you again.”

Summary

JetQuay is an excellent concept that unfortunately did not live up to (my) expectations of a streamlined premium travel experience on this occasion.

Beyond the buggy transfer, the KrisFlyer Gold Lounge in T3 has a superior food & beverage offering while the Ambassador Transit Hotel offers Deluxe Rooms with en-suite at a fraction of the price.

While all the staff I encountered were unfailingly polite and courteous, there just isn’t enough value to make this more than a one-time novelty. And a walk to remember... ]]> Trip Reports Coathanger http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-reports/1017813-my-jetquay-experience-sin-walk-remember.html One extreme to another - From Riyadh to Munich (then Osaka) on SV, EK, BA, and JL http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-reports/1017794-one-extreme-another-riyadh-munich-then-osaka-sv-ek-ba-jl.html Tue, 17 Nov 2009 11:24:21 GMT After a relatively sedate few weeks following my Egypt and UK run in early October, which has seen my travel settle back to the routine regional runs on Emirates and the eminently commendable new FlyDubai (LCCs are great when no-one else knows they... After a relatively sedate few weeks following my Egypt and UK run in early October, which has seen my travel settle back to the routine regional runs on Emirates and the eminently commendable new FlyDubai (LCCs are great when no-one else knows they exist), things are starting to busy up again over the next couple of weeks. Whilst this trip is by no means an epic by the standards of most posters on this forum, I have chosen to write it up as it includes a few personal firsts (first trip to Japan, first EK flight from continental Europe, etc) and is also distinguished by being the first trip where I have deliberately flown a more arduous routing than possible purely to earn miles.

I am the first to admit that this is not a mileage run of the sort championed and exquisitely reported upon on in this forum by such mileage run luminaries as Seat 2A in that it is merely an extension of a trip I was making anyway, but is nonetheless a step deeper into miles earning addiction on my part and thus personally noteworthy in that regard. The trip is actually two main tickets with a few connections in between but as the trips intermesh somewhat I shall write them all up in one thread.

The Dubai to Osaka portion of this trip has been planned for some time, and is flown as part of a London to Osaka ticket on which I have been stopping over in Dubai for a month or so. Emirates have been periodically offering some seriously cheap fares from the UK to points beyond Dubai in recent months and I was delighted to find earlier in the year that I could fly London to Osaka with a lengthy stopover each way in Dubai for only $40 more than I was being quoted for a London to Dubai ticket. Given that Dubai to Osaka tickets regularly top $1500 in economy I snapped this up straight away.

The pseudo mileage run elements of the trip came about after a few friends suggested a trip to Munich to address my cravings for good beer, lashings of pork, and some weather that didn’t involve sunscreen. I had originally planned to fly to Munich direct from Dubai on Emirates but in October Emirates released an offer which awarded bonuses for meeting fixed earning thresholds in the last few weeks of the year. Based on my planned travel for the rest of the year I would fall a scant few miles short of one of these thresholds and thus miss out on a significant uplift to my ravaged miles balance. A little while spent on the Skywards mileage calculator told me that if I flew Emirates to Manchester and then back from Munich direct I would cross the required line, so I booked up and took my next step into miles earning insanity. This also afforded me the opportunity to fly BA from Manchester to Munich via Heathrow and gain a first experience of Terminal 5, a project which I briefly worked on as a graduate consultant and which I had thus been interested to pass through for some time.

As with my last trip, with the exception of the Munich to Dubai leg and a domestic J Class run on Japan Airlines, I am afraid this is likely to be experienced from the back of the bus. Similarly, my recent engagement and the subsequent assault upon my bank account by florists, dress-makers, and many other vendors whose actual services baffle me somewhat, has led to a (hopefully temporary) hiatus in my frequenting of 5-star establishments on personal trips and I shall be largely enjoying the budget end of the lodgings market on this trip.

At present the schedule includes:

DXB - RUH Saudi Arabian Airlines
RUH - DXB Emirates
DXB - MAN Emirates
MAN - LHR - MUC British Airways
MUC - DXB Emirates (Business Class)
DXB - KIX Emirates
HND - KIX Japan Airlines (Domestic J Class)
KIX - DXB Emirates

The planned schedule is highly likely to change as I have potentially got to shoe-horn a few additional short haul trips into the itinerary at some point. I will add these flights in if they are in any way unique or previously unreported (or indeed if anyone expresses any particular desire to read about regional hops in the Middle East).

Any comments / suggestions appreciated. ]]> Trip Reports FinalCallDXB http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-reports/1017794-one-extreme-another-riyadh-munich-then-osaka-sv-ek-ba-jl.html Trip report- 4 nights- 4 hotels in Bangkok http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-reports/1017438-trip-report-4-nights-4-hotels-bangkok.html Mon, 16 Nov 2009 16:02:59 GMT Day 1

We just got back from a whirlwind 4 night trip to Bangkok. Finally my plan to take Fridays and Tuesdays off so that when a Monday public holiday comes around I get a 5 day weekend comes to fruition. . That’s what I get for living in Japan I suppose.
I wanted to try as many different hotels as possible this time but as my username suggests I do have a psychological need to make my first stop out of the airport to the Grand Hyatt Erawan. It has kind of become a tradition that I stay there at least the first night of any stay in Thailand and it is definitely one of my favorite hotels in Bangkok.

This was my first time in Bangkok in 2 and a half years, but as I was walking in the doors and through the opulent lobby, we were approached by a member of staff who greeted me by name!! Do they take secret photos at check-in and keep them on file, in order to study who will be arriving each day at some 5 star hotels? If not, how do they do it? I’m not handsome enough to be remembered (and I certainly hope I’m not ugly enough to be remembered either). I’m only a Gold Passport Platinum member too, not a diamond.

While checking in I was handed a Hyatt polo shirt as a gift and asked if I still wanted them to screen my calls. Last time I was here it was to get a divorce, hence the screening of calls. I know that it was just a note in a file but I still felt special that they “remembered”. Silly I know but I can’t help it.
This was the second time I’ve been given a shirt, though the first one, several years ago didn’t have a collar. It seems they have gifts for returning guests every 2 or 3 stays. I’ve previously received a keychain, with the 3 headed Erawan shrine elephant (which I use to this day) and I think I received other gifts too but I can’t remember what they were now

We were shown to room 922 at the front of the hotel overlooking the BTS skytrain, racetrack and a view of the pool. There was the usual bowl with maybe 3 green apples in the room, which for some reason were swiftly replaced by several mangosteen. These were in turn swiftly consumed by my traveling companion, barely leaving one for me.

Lunch was by the pool, where I ordered the obligatory Fish & Chips (yes, I kind of have my Hyatt rituals). It was as good as expected. Not much to report there.
The pool is big and nice, but it is a “free form” pool, so if you want to do laps, you need to find the longest point in the middle. I guess it would be difficult to do laps if there were more people there. As it was low season there was hardly anyone by the pool so the staff didn’t have much to do. I wanted to take a photo over the wall looking down onto Erawan shrine and foolishly asked the staff member stationed at the pool if I could step behind the shrubbery and take a pic over the side. He wasn’t having any of it and told me I should contact the PR department if I wanted to take any of those kinds of photos. Looking back, I don’t know why I asked; I should have just went over and snapped one I suppose. It’s easier to ask forgiveness than permission right?

Later I followed the path that leads from the pool and goes along the front-side of the hotel which faces Rajadamri Road and takes you to several of the i.Sawan villas, which I have never seen occupied btw.

Hidden amongst the villas, I found this little statue, right before the doors that lead into the fitness facilities and spa. I went inside and was wandering around and about to take a photo of the ceiling to floor glass paneled towel cabinet when I was told that I wasn’t supposed to be taking photos in there and that I should contact the PR guy if I wanted to. That PR guy must be really busy… ]]> Trip Reports hyatt_otaku http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-reports/1017438-trip-report-4-nights-4-hotels-bangkok.html Did somebody mention Asia? SFO-HKG-SIN-PEK-HKG-JFK-SFO http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-reports/1017206-did-somebody-mention-asia-sfo-hkg-sin-pek-hkg-jfk-sfo.html Sun, 15 Nov 2009 21:12:01 GMT *_Friday, November 13, 2009_* Today is my first trip to Asia. Ever. I’m going on a business trip to visit co-workers at our Asian headquarters in Singapore, and we’re making a market visit to Beijing. I live in San Francisco, and will actually... Friday, November 13, 2009
Today is my first trip to Asia. Ever. I’m going on a business trip to visit co-workers at our Asian headquarters in Singapore, and we’re making a market visit to Beijing. I live in San Francisco, and will actually return to New York City before coming back to San Francisco. The Great Circle Mapper says in total I’ll fly 23,187 miles during this trip, which gets me back to San Francisco on Wednesday, November 25th.

Segment 1: San Francisco (SFO) --> Hong Kong (HKG)
Airline/Flight: Cathay Pacific 879
Departure Time: 12:05pm PST
Landing Time: 6:38pm Hong Kong Time
Seat: 90A

Not only is my this my first trip to Asia, this is my first trip on a Boeing 747. I ensured that my executive assistant booked one of the Business Class seats on the upper deck, so I can get maximum effect and enjoyment. I’ve heard the seats in the upper deck are great and a little longer than those down below.

I arrived at San Francisco airport without issue. I was warmly greeted by a staff member of CX who directed me to the business class check-in line. There were only 2 people in line ahead of me and the wait was minimal. I noticed right away that there’s a great service disparity between US carriers and Cathay Pacific, especially in Business Class. The person behind the counter walked over to me in line and greeted me, welcoming me to CX and inviting me to join her at the desk for baggage check-in. I’m used to the typical AA “Next!!” (though I don’t check baggage often, so it’s rare that I hear it these days).

At any rate, check-in was nice and she handed me my boarding pass and lounge pass. She instructed me where to go for Security and she also told me where the BA Terraces Lounge was at SFO. I headed down to security and went through the chaotic scene. It took about 20 minutes to pass through security and there were no issues. I tried to take a peek at the plane I’d be flying, but it wasn’t parked at the gate yet. So I went downstairs to the Terraces Lounge. The nice lady welcomed me, gave me the password for the wireless internet and told me we’d be boarding directly from the lounge.

Boarding started at 11:40am and I was onto the plane. Ahh… the marvel of the 747. I entered, took a right turn and started walking through business class. Immediately I was shocked to see the herringbone-formation seats. My first impression was wow… these are tiny! I’m a fairly big guy (6-feet, 220 pounds) so I was instantly a little anxious. I found the stairwell, went up to the upper deck and found seat 90A. I thought the ottoman would allow more storage than it did, and the seats do feel very claustrophobic. I had plenty of storage space for the bag I brought and my computer bag (I decided to pack one day’s worth of clothes plus some track pants for the plane) so I put everything into the overhead.

I disconnected the CX headphones and installed my adapter and headphones (Thanks marcuslai for the tip!!) I then took a few minutes to review my surroundings and get familiar with everything. The CX Studio entertainment options are endless. Clearly one of the best IFE systems I’ve seen. Everything is at shoulder level so it’s all easy to get to, including controls for the seat and the power outlet. No adapter required (two thumbs up!!)

We started backing out of the gate in no time and I buckled in. These seats require a shoulder seatbelt like you’d find in the front seat of a car. It disconnects if you like leaving the lap belt only.

We taxied over to the correct runway and we were off the ground right around 12:30pm by my clock. It was interesting sitting angled at 45-degrees. As you’re climbing into the clouds, you’re kind of tilted off to the right side (in my case) and pushed against the wall a bit. Not entirely uncomfortable, but definitely a different sensation.

About 10 minutes after liftoff, the flight attendants issued our in-flight menus. Today’s flight will have a lunch and dinner selection:

Menu
Starters
- Smoked duck breast with fig chutney and mango salsa
- Mesclun salad with portabella mushroom and lemon vinaigrette

Main Courses
- Pan-fried sea bass with black bean sauce, egg fried rice, kailan and carrots
- Grilled chicken breast with roasted red pepper sauce, creamy polenta, asparagus and leeks
- Sautéed beef with wild mushrooms, steamed jasmine rice and Chinese cabbage with ham
- Angel hair pasta with truffle oil, sautéed mushrooms, tomato and toasted pine nuts

Cheese and Dessert
- Cambozola, Cheddar, Munster Cheese
- Fresh seasonal fruit
- Pecan pie with whipped cream

Tea and Coffee

Pralines

The dinner menu had the following:

Starter
- Fresh seasonal fruit

Main Courses
- Crab stuffed sole with saffron sauce, Yukon gold mashed potatoes and sautéed spinach
- Braised chicken with mushroom, chestnuts, dates, steamed jasmine rice, kalian and carrots
- Abalone clam and mushroom congee with spring onion pancake

Dessert
- Apple crumble torte with vanilla sauce

Tea and Coffee

Pralines

The selection of wines, champagnes and other beverages included:
Champagne
- Champagne Deutz, Brut Classic

White Wines
- Beringer Stone Cellars California Chardonnay 2008
- P Ferraud & Fils Vire-Clesse 2008

Red Wines
- Geyser Peak Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2005
- Vieux Chateau Landon Cru Bourgeois 2005

Port:
- Dow’s Late Bottled Vintage Port 2003

Aperitifs and Cocktails
- Whiskies
- Cognac
- Liquers
- Beer
- CX Signature Drinks
o Oriental Breeze
o Cloud Nine

After the menus were distributed, cocktails and cashew nuts were distributed. I ordered the Cloud Nine, which is a concoction of gin, Cointreau, Sprite and a little lemon. It was similar to a gin and tonic, but not as much alcohol. It was lined with sugar around the rim of the glass. Overall tasty and refreshing.

The flight was well underway now and I decided it was time to relax and take in a movie. I watched The Taking of Pelham 123 and then decided to watch Angels and Demons. I’m very impressed with the Studio CX product. The screen, while not High Definition, is very good and very big. And the selection is outrageously good.

We crossed the International Date Line around 6:30pm PST. Most of the folks around me were trying to get some sleep, however the woman next to me somewhat inconsiderately kept her window shade up. I caught about an hour of sleep myself, but since it’s about 10:30 in the morning, I think I can power through until I get to Hong Kong. Once I get on my next flight, I’ll catch a few z’s.

I tried a few TV shows, listened to a few CD’s and eventually watched two more movies: Julie and Julia and 500 Days of Summer. Anything to pass the time! Most others slept and after getting up to walk around the 747-400, I spoke with a FA who asked why I wasn’t sleeping. We chatted about the crew rest area, and how she takes this Hong Kong to San Francisco to Hong Kong flight 1x per week. That’s all she does!

The rest of the flight was uneventful. When we turned south, near Japan, the flight was quite bumpy for about an hour. I think the captain eventually found a smooth altitude and it was smooth sailing from there until we started down to Hong Kong. As we descended I twisted my body so I could look out the window and watch the landing from the top deck of a 747. It looked like we were hundreds of feet up as we hit the ground! We taxied shortly and pulled into the gate. Overall a good flight and not as bad as I thought it would be for a 13+hour flight. ]]> Trip Reports 206013671 http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-reports/1017206-did-somebody-mention-asia-sfo-hkg-sin-pek-hkg-jfk-sfo.html Alaska Airlines Inaugural flight from Oakland to Maui http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-reports/1017048-alaska-airlines-inaugural-flight-oakland-maui.html Sun, 15 Nov 2009 06:47:39 GMT Alaska Airlines Inaugural flight from Oakland to Maui (Kahului Airport) Photo link: http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=8QbNHDNy5bqPZ4 Here is just a short report on my recent flight on another great Alaska Airlines inaugural flight.... Alaska Airlines Inaugural flight from Oakland to Maui (Kahului Airport)
Photo link:
http://share.shutterfly.com/action/w...8QbNHDNy5bqPZ4

Here is just a short report on my recent flight on another great Alaska Airlines inaugural flight. As I say, Alaska Airlines and Jetblue Airways both offer great inaugural flights, and there is no doubt that Alaska Airlines is the most generous when it comes to inaugural souvenirs and really throws great parties, and to my surprise, the Oakland to Maui launch is just as great as any Seattle launch, and if not, better than expected!

Here is the flight information:
November 9, 2009
Alaska Airlines Flight 881
OAK-OGG Lv0745 Arr1105 Boeing 737-800 Winglet N585AS “Lei”

I arrived at OAK about two hours prior to arrival and the morning was quiet outside, but busy at the Alaska Airlines counters. The counters are all decorated with balloons, Hawaiian floral arrangement and staffs were wearing the Hawaiian uniforms, as well as special customs to celebrate the flight. The agent was friendly and she was just as excited as me, as she knew that I was heading to Maui on this special flight. On my way to the security line, I saw a special Alaska Airlines desk checking in press, as well as the special Hawaiian dance troupe.

I arrived at gate 6 within a few minutes, as the security line was pretty quiet this morning. Both Gate 4 and 6 were blocked off (for the next day as well, as the Kona inaugural would take place the next day) with a huge buffet table setup, as well as a small band and large dance floor with Hawaiian statues everywhere. Soon around 6am, the table was all set up with juices, bottled water from Athena, coffee, breakfast pastries, cupcakes with Hawaiian paper umbrellas, fortune cookies sponsored by the newly opened Chinese fast food joint at T-1, Silver Dragon Café, as well as sliced fruit, tropical fruits like small bananas, and Macadamia Nut flavored chocolate kisses. The highlight was a cake made like an Alaska Airlines Boeing 737-800. The staffs were very careful, as the cake was quite fragile, but spectacular. Another Alaska Airlines staff was also making personalized baggage tag for all of us, who were on the inaugural flight. Soon the Hawaiian music started with multiple Hula Dances performance. Then we had the usual speeches that were made by officials from both Alaska Airlines and Oakland Airport authority, which were definitely looking for an airline to replace the great operation by Aloha Airlines. Around 7am, there was a ribbon cutting ceremony and then my name and another passenger were paged to the podium. I was curious and soon the staff told me that I would have the honor to be the first passenger to board the flight to Maui this morning. After a quick photo and a short chat with the Alaska Airlines staff and the completion of the blessing ceremony by two Hawaiian priests, I entered this freshly cleaned Boeing 737-800 at 7:03am.

The F/As were all experienced (everyone of them had over twenty years of flying with Alaska Airlines) and excellent as we expected from Alaska, and later I found out that this Oakland trips were very popular among senior F/As, as most of them would have two overnights at Maui and/or Kona. The flight flew to Maui and Kona in an alternative pattern, so most F/As would get two overnights at either Maui or Kona! So you should all expect some of our favorite experienced staffs on these Oakland to Maui/Kona, as well as the San Jose to Maui/Kona flights next year. Mai Tai was served to first class passengers as the pre-takeoff beverages, and excitements definitely filled up the air despite these early hours. The flight went out full (as well as the inaugural to Kona the next day).

Door was closed early at 7:38am, and ground staffs and special guests were taking pictures in front of the airplane, as well as the special Alaska Airlines photographer. We took off from R/W29 at 7:50am, and flying time this morning was five hours and thirty-two minutes, longer than typical, as the headwind was quite strong. Even we took off on time, we would arrive late. The flight was pretty straightforward, as we heading off the Pacific Ocean. We cruised at 34,000 feet initially and then climbing to 36,000feet a few hours later, followed by our final cruising attitude at 38,000feet.

For coach passengers, they got a free breakfast this morning, as well as the typical complimentary Mai Tai and/or POG punch prior to arrival.

Here is the full menu for first class passengers:
Good Morning and Welcome Aboard Alaska Airlines
First Class Breakfast
Fresh Seasonal Fruit Bowl
Warm Fresh Pastries

Choices of Entrees
Omelette with Caramelized Onions and Goat Cheese
Rosemary Potatoes
Chicken Apple Sausage
Or
Cheese Crepes with Pineapple Sauce
Applewood Smoked Bacon

FB100W C1
DH-41Q (10/09)

The fruit plate had some cut melon, orange, blueberries and strawberries, and the choice of pastries include croissants, Apple Danish and Strawberry jam covered scones. Bags of Macadamia nuts were passed out around 11:25am PST, as well as more Mai Tai at 12:10pm. I sort of wish Alaska Airlines would have kept the mid-flight dessert service in first class. It is definitely nicer than a small bag of Macadamia nuts. I hope they can bring back a proper light snack on these long Hawaiian flights. Just wishful thinking!

A special ceremony took place mid-flight, as the F/A proudly paraded the whole cabin with Alaska Airlines’ latest award – the JD Power Award that Alaska had won for the past two years.

The flight soon came to an end, as we began our descent at 10:54am Hawaiian local time. We landed on R/W02 at 11:22am, and parked at gate 29 at 11:26am. Local staffs were handing out more leis, as well as more Hawaiian Hula dance in the background. Bags came out very quickly here at Maui and it was a definitely a nice end to the flight.

I am honored to be part of this inaugural flight, and have already booked the San Jose to Maui inaugural flight.

Thank you Alaska Airlines, the staffs at Oakland, as well as the four wonderful F/As, for excellent memory!

Carfield ]]> Trip Reports Carfield http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-reports/1017048-alaska-airlines-inaugural-flight-oakland-maui.html NRT-CPH SAS Business class Saturday 24th October 2009 http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-reports/1016763-nrt-cph-sas-business-class-saturday-24th-october-2009-a.html Fri, 13 Nov 2009 10:06:36 GMT Tokyo Narita (NRT) – Copenhagen (CPH)

Date Saturday 24th October 2009
Airline: SAS
Class of service: Business Class
Flight number: SK984
Aircraft type: Airbus A340-300
Scheduled (actual): departure time 1140 (1205)
Scheduled (actual): arrival time 1605 (1530)
Flight duration: 11h. 35 m.
Seat: 8B

Departure

I arrived at the huge Narita airport with the limousine bus from my hotel. The traffic in and out of Tokyo in the morning can be quite a hell, so I took an early buss. The ride from downtown to the airport took just over 1. h.
I arrived at the check-in desk at 09:00, two hours and thirty minutes before departure. I was early, but the bus ride could just as well have lasted two hours or more. I went straight to the check-in counter. There was no one in line at Business, two other persons in line at the Star Gold counter, next to business class and the economy class area was all cleared. Well maybe all the eco. Pax used the self-service kiosks? There were plenty of them. And usually they work really fine. There was a small line, like 10-15 pax, at the two baggage drop counters.
I received my boarding pass and had my lugged tagged for my final destination and marked with the star alliance priority tag within two minutes. I made my way to security to find a separate first and business class queue, but there were only two lines and they were used by all passengers. But since it only took 10 minutes it didn’t really matter. Maybe it was just Asian efficiency? As there were quite a lot of people in the security lines due to the heavy load of passengers travelling with the Lufthansa 747 the SIA A380 and one Thai 747 taking off within the next three hours. Then walking to the immigration I was shocked. All checkpoints were open but what a hell of people. No priority lines what so ever! I chose a line and then preparing for waiting. It took around 30 minutes to clear immigrations and then I was free. Then I walked straight to the UNITED Red Carpet Club, RCC, or the SCC as I call it. Well this one definitely was not a SCC lounge. It was brand new, spacious, with a really nice view and comfortable furniture’s. The food selection on the other hand, wow that was poor. Would even call it none existing, a great selection of licker though (but at 09:30 in the morning not really my thing). So had some coffee and one banana and then I decided going to the ANA Business Class lounge to get some real food.

United RCC Narita

The ANA lounge was really nice. There were a great food selection including sushi, fresh croissants, white bread and different chesses and ham, dark bread, sandwich and fresh fruit, along with a great drinks selection. Also there were a soba/muddle bar available, where you could chose from a huge selection of different kinds of soba and noodle dishes. And complementary wifi, a big plus for me! Don’t understand why some lounges only offers pay-by-minute wifi, and not free wifi…

4'th flor ANA Business Class Lounge at NRT
The ground floor lounge is huge, but was crowded this morning, so I went upstairs, netx to the ANA F Lounge

At about 11:10, an announcement was made that my flight was boarding. I walked to the gate, it took around 10 minutes. I used the Business class line and was soon onboard and sitting in my seat, 8B. It’s in the last row of business class in the small second cabin. Once on board my jacket was taken and I was offered a drink of water, orange juice or Charles Hiedsieck Champagne.

I know its a small thing. But I dont like the design of the champagne glass on the SAS flights...

I took the Champagne and some water with ice. We pushed back from the gate two minutes after our scheduled departure time. But due to the heavy traffic going in and out of Narita we weren’t airborne before 30minutes later. 30 minutes later into the flight the seatbelt sine is still on and the captain introduces himself and notifies us that we will be crossing some sewer jet streams and causing turbulence and that it will last the next hour or so and that everybody have to stay seated with the seatbelt on as well as the cabin crew. So no service before 2 h. and 30 minutes into the flight. Not really SAS fault, just a bit annoying.
After the seatbelt sign were turned off the service began. The crew handed out the comfort kit (better than the one on the CPH-NRT route) and noise cancelling headphones. I just bought a pair of my own Sony digital noise cancelling MDR-NC500D. And guys I tell you it’s the best I have ever tried. They are just amazing. The comfort kit were containing hand cream, lip balm, shaving kit, eye mask, slippers, sucks, earplugs, a shoe bag and shoehorn as well as mints and some antibacterial wipes. And we also got today’s menu:

Canapé

Grilled scallop, red pimento, Japanese sweet chili and pickled Chinese artichoke skewer

Green leaf salad with dressing of the day

First course

Swedish gravlax with wasabi cream sauce, salmon roe mache lettuce and lime

Selection of breads

Rye bread, rolls and selection of Scandinavian crisp breads served with Danish butter

Main course

Simmered alfonsino fish, vegetables in sweet soy sauce and black sesame rice

Sautéed chicken breast with penne pasta, vegetable tomato sauce and mozzarella cheese

Roast lion of lam with almond crust, leek and potato gratin, root vegetables, suga snap peas, dried lingonberries and Madeira sauce

Mushroom risotto with vegetable tagliatelle and okra in a basil cream sauce (the vegetarian course)

Cheese

Camembert and Danish Blue cheese with date and apple chutney

A sweet finish

Chocolate cream cake with fresh fruit salad

Wine

White wine:
Chateau Haut Bertinerie 2006 Bordeaux 100% Sauvignon Blance
Sancerre Les Grandmontains Domaine Laport 2007 100% Sauvignon Blance
Today’s guest wine: Chablis 2002 – don’t remember the name of the house

Red wine:
Crozes-Hermitage Petite Ruche 2007 100% Syrah from the northern Rhone district
Casa Silva Los Lingues Grand Reserva 2006 100% Carmenere Colchagua Vally Chile
Today’s guest wine: Sorry don’t remember anything else beside it was from Italia

Champagne:
Henriot 2000 Vintage Millesime, 58% Pinot Noir and 42% Chardonnay

Within 10 minutes the drink service began, I continued with the champagne and some nuts and the canapé. I forgot to pick up a newspaper at the gate so asked the sweet FA taking care of our small cabin if she got an extra Berlingske and Børsen (two Danish papers). So before the dinner service began I enjoyed my Danish paper and the nice chilled champagne. The scallops though were kind of tasteless and boring.

Then the FA came around setting up the table for dinner, a white tablecloth and wine glasses. I asked for more champagne and a glass of the Chateau Haut Bertinerie. Then the FA’s came around with the starter, a perfect gravlax with fresh salmon caviar. But wonder what people who don’t like seafood does? The first course as well as the canapé was seafood and no option of anything else.
For main course I chose the Roast lion of lam. It was perfect cooked for my taste, medium done and tender. Served with a great potato gratin, perfectly backed root vegetables, perfect steamed sugar snap peas, dried lingonberries and Madeira sauce. I found the sauce to be a bit too thick for my taste, but overall a great course. With the lamb I chose the red Crozes-Hermitage Petite Ruche and continued with that for the great cheese platter, as always on SAS. Followed by the desert cake from the trolley served with fresh fruit salad, it’s a winner, every time. Some may find I boring that the dessert always is a variety of cake and fruit, but I enjoy it and especially the Sautern makes the dessert complete.
After dessert I tuned to the movie selection. As I have pointed out before I find the AVOD system on SAS a bit lousy. The movie selection is just too small for a 12 h. flight as well as a frequent traveler on SAS intercontinental flights the selection is too small. I enjoyed one movie together with a nice selection of snakes from the buffet area. And then I went to bed. If you recline the seat fully you fell like your sliding down, so you need to adjust the seatback and leg rest after reclining the seat. And I find the seat a bit too short, I’m 185 tall, so I prefer a bulkhead seat, since the normal seats recline into a box under the seat in front of you. So the best row in business is for me row 1 and row 7.

Woke up around 5 hours later and asked the FA to get me a fresh brewed cappuccino, a fresh sandwich and some fruit (strawberry’s, melon and pears). A nice small meal, which I enjoyed will working on my laptop. The business class seat offers great space for working and eating at the same time and lots of table space available. But it’s a shame that you can’t turn the seat into a fully flat bed.

The buffet bar

Then the second meal service began, offering:

First course – selection of canapés

Shrimp cocktail with spicy tomato salad
Smoked chicken with onion and pimento confit

Hot main course – your selection from the trolley

Swedish beef Lindström – beef, beentroot and caper patties, with creamy demi-glace sauce

Steamed salmon galette in a tarragon cream sauce, sautéed potatoes with red onion and thyme, rice with black sesame seeds and sautéed vegetables

Dessert
Fresh fruit salad

Short after dinner we began the in-flight into Copenhagen airport, landing just a bit before schedule.
The flight was overbook in economy and economy extra but almost empty in business. One of the FA’s told me this. So most of the passengers in business were some lucky bastarts ;) – then I asked if they had upgraded the passengers depending on their FF tier level. But no, all by luck at check-in. It makes one wonder why no one at SAS ground staff at the gate decides to upgrade some Eurobonus Gold or Silver members before upgrading other passengers.…

All in all a great flight. And I must say again. The service on the intercontinental flights has improved a lot over the last two years, even though the staff has been cut down. Great job SAS.

]]> Trip Reports NicoEBG http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-reports/1016763-nrt-cph-sas-business-class-saturday-24th-october-2009-a.html EVA Airways: BR68 LHR-BKK-TPE in Premium Economy http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-reports/1016552-eva-airways-br68-lhr-bkk-tpe-premium-economy.html Thu, 12 Nov 2009 20:57:47 GMT Intro
I hope this report is useful to anyone considering a flight with EVA Airways (BR) from London LHR to either Bangkok BKK or on to Taipei TPE. EVA is Taiwan's second airline and is part of the Evergreen Group. It flies daily (except Mondays) between London and Taiwan.

I am a Gold member of EVA's Evergreen Club. Where this has affected the service I may have, I have marked it.

Booking
I booked a return ticket LHR-TPE on 24th October via a London agent as follows:

LHR 21:20 06NOV BR68 Arrive TPE 21:50 07NOV
TPE 09:10 15NOV BR67 Arrive LHR 19:10 15NOV

At this time of year, LHR is 8 hours behind TPE and 7 hours behind BKK where the plane makes a brief stopover.

Flights were booked in Elite (Q) class - EVA's premium economy. EVA currently run a 777-300ER on this route. This has three cabin classes - Premium Laurel (business class) - 61" pitch, non-180 degree lie flat seats, Elite (premium economy) - 38" pitch, and Economy - 33". Sometimes they run a 747 which also has Elite class. If you get this, your experience will be very similar.

It is unusual for me to book a ticket in London. On getting the PNR, I immediately went to EVA's website to choose my seat. With a 2-4-2 configuration, half the seats are aisle seats and that's what I prefer. Outbound was showing only one centre seat remaining, inbound ditto. I've seen this nonsense before - EVA seem to withhold more and more seats from the online booking system these days. I got a Chinese speaker to ring EVA in TPE. I immediately got 22H for outbound which is kept for golds/diamonds. Inbound they coudn't improve on the centre seat (though I later got 26C allocated). If you cannot get the seat you want, it's well worth calling an EVA office, though I find London less helpful than Taipei.

Check-in
I generally arrive at LHR about an hour before take off. Check-in closes 45mins before take off though I've cut it finer than that. You never see the terrible check-in queues at LHR for EVA flights that you do for CX, SQ, VS so even for the non-FF Economy flyer, EVA scores well.

Just outside the terminal building, at 2020 (exactly an hour before take off) I got a call on my mobile from EVA wanting to know if I was on my way because they were about to close check-in. This was somewhat of a shock - I've never been called before and wasn't really cutting it particularly fine. I explained I was only 2 mins away from the desk so it wasn't a problem. I knew the flight was pretty full, so was wondering if seats were tight and an OP-UP was a possibility which sometimes happens for golds on EVA.

EVA flights depart from T3 at LHR and you check-in in area D. Within the "bay" there are desks for Economy and Elite. At the front there are two desks for Premium Laurel (C class)/Diamond/Gold pax. There is also a ticketing/enquiries desk.

I arrived at the front desks. One was unoccupied, another had a girl typing stuff into her mobile phone. She completely ignored me standing there but then a friendly chap came over calling "Mr Jimbo" and guided me to one of the Elite desks. I've seen this before - they seem to close the front desks early, just leaving one of the bay "Elite class" desks open. I assume the woman with the phone was just a miscellaneous LHR ground staff, but really it does make for a shabby impression with the EVA sign above her still illuminated.

The EVA chap was a British guy in EVA uniform and probably the boss for the night. He asked "Mr Jimbo, it's entirely up to you of course, so don't hesitate to refuse. We still have your aisle seat kept for you but the lady in the adjacent window seat would very much like to swap." I politely declined - I really appreciate being able to walk around during the long flight. An Air Canada agent at the desk then checked me in, but said to the EVA guy "oh what about the comment on here" (OP-UP again?), "just delete it" he says...

At LHR they automatically tag your bags "priority" if you are Gold/Diamond/Premium Laurel which is most helpful and seems fairly standard amongst airlines. However EVA's policy is that to get "priority" you must be Diamond or in Premium Laurel (C) class. If you are Gold and not in PL you are supposed to get a green "Evergreen Club" sticker. They claim this still offers a form of priority, but my results are mixed. I only had one suitcase to check-in. The usual allowance for Elite is 25Kg in total, but 45Kg if you have gold. LHR requires that no individual piece weighs more than 32Kg. On leaving check-in they then closed up. I was the last PAX.

I got a boarding card and two lounge invites - one for LHR where EVA use the SAS London lounge and one for their own lounge at BKK where the flight makes a short stop. At BKK they don't really need to see the invite - your BP and/or FF card is enough, but it does include a map for newbies.

Note that Elite class does not usually get lounge access. For non-EVA lounges, you must be gold or dimaond. For EVA lounges you must be silver. I believe EVA will sell lounge access at LHR check-in to those who don't normally qualify, but I'm not sure of this.

Some airlines at LHR sticker your boarding card if you are gold so that you may use fast track security. Else really it's only available if you are in C or F. On seeing my Elite class BP, the guy at the entrance to security said I should use "Fast Track" because I'm flying business class. I didn't argue, but did check with the woman at the entrance to Fast Track pointing out that I was merely in premium economy, not "proper business class". She said "oh no you can use Fast Track". Was it "Elite class" (which shows a Y on the BP), or the flash of my gold card, or not wanting to turn me back? I don't know.

Fast Track security was same as usual - not particularly fast. Laptops out of bags. No shoe scanning at the X-ray or afterwards this time. I grabbed a bottle of duty free. As usual they look at your BP and ask "is Taiwan your final destination". Saying "yes" means they think you don't need a security sealed bag, because they don't realise you de-plane and go through security at BKK. I asked for a security-sealed bag and got one. IF YOU ARE ON BR68 going LHR to TPE, you MUST get your duty free liquids security sealed.

I reached the lounge at 20:40. If you don't have lounge access, there are plenty of other distractions at T3.

The London Lounge is a perfectly decent, functional lounge. I never have much time there and don't think it's ideal if you want peace and quiet. The usual choice of cold snacks, booze (free of course), good reading matter etc was available. The display was already saying "boarding" but from previous experience it's even gone to "final call" whilst boarding hasn't yet started. Still it can be a lengthy walk to the gate so after a 10 minute stay I made my way to the gate.

Unusually boarding was from gate 31. At the entrance to the gate Group4 security were politley checking passports against BPs. The guy thanked me by my first name which seemed a bit odd. Then just inside I presented my BP at the EVA desk, no funny beep so no OP-UP. Premium Laurel (C)/Gold/Diamond boarding had just started so I walked straight on through the depressing waiting area and onto the plane. It was 21:00.

ACT ONE - LHR-BKK
Two EVA FAs were greeting pax as I board at the front door. I stored my carry-on in the locker. A nice consequence of the wider spacing in Elite compared with Economy is that it's rare to have trouble stowing your hand luggage, even if you don't have the benefit of priority boarding.

A lady was already sitting in the window seat. She had an attitude about her and was obviously the lady what wanted to swap. I said "hello" but this just seemed to antagonise her. I suppose she'd checked in nice and early hoping for an aisle seat and was told that subject to my not turning up, or turning up and agreeing, she'd get what she wanted. Then right at the last minute she got the bad news.

After a few minutes, an FA came over to the lady and said "they could help". She got up moaning that she couldn't stand window seats. She headed in the direction of economy. Then an FA came over to me, checked my name (got excited about an OP-UP again) and then asked if I knew where the lady was. I said she'd been moved and then the FA scribbled something out on her clipboard. Exactly the same thing happened again a few minutes later. Normally when crew speak to me at this stage, it's because of an OP-UP. Put together with my check-in experience, never in my flying history have I thought so many times in a single flight that I was about to be OP-UPed, only to be disappointed.

Eventually a new chap appeared and asked me to let him through to the window seat. He was a gold who'd been upgraded from an Economy aisle. Seems they did a straight swap and the lady downgraded (if she had an Elite class ticket in the first place).

We pushed back at about 21:30 but with traffic didn't get airborne until about 10:10. Pretty typical at LHR.

The flight was indeed full in Economy (I checked) and Elite. PL looked almost full.

In the seat-back pocket was Verve, EVA's inflight mag with articles in Chinese, Japanese and English. Content is different, so the more languages you speak the more you have to read. "Sky Shop" - the duty free mag. FFs get a small discount on most items. They don't show tobacco products anymore, but you can still buy them. There is also a guide to the VOD system and headphones.

You get an amenity kit and slippers. The amenity kit has been "cost down" over the years. It currently consists of a plastic bag but with a traditional zip, about the same size as a small pencil case. Inside is a tooth brush, tooth paste, and moisturising cream. That's it. I find the bag more useful than its contents - handy for keeping receipts or coins/keys.

The meal service started soon after cruising. I noticed:
1) No hot towel service - usually they come round with thin towels delivered via tongs in Elite
2) No welcome drink/nuts on cruising - this has been more sporadic in recent times
3) No individual welcome from an FA. They started this for Golds/Diamonds a while back and personally I find it embarressing.

So straight into the meal service. Generally Elite class meals are better than Economy, but nowhere near business class standard. It's served from a trolley with 2 choices. Paper menus disappeared years ago - but if you're quick you can spot the meal choices displayed on the screens.

The meal was described as "Chicken or Fish". I went for Fish which was with potato and vegetables. Not bad. There was a and butter, cheesecake, salad and a couple of crackers with a generous piece of President Camembert cheese. Wine was "red or white". The white comes out of plastic tetra-pak style "bottle". The red comes in a plastic bottle designed to look like a traditional glass one. I went for red, and it was OK. My upgraded neighbour demanded a G&T and was politely asked if he could wait a moment. He then went into a patronising mini-lecture on how "you mustn't forget" before telling me all about Asian women. He was only going as far as BKK, thank goodness. The FA soon returned with the G&T and she got a bit more of the treatment.

The FAs then disappeared into Economy and the top up run was a long time coming. It was combined with collecting the trays and the first of a coffee run. So I got a second glass of wine and a first cup of coffee at the same time. (Suits me, but not the delay.) A second coffee run followed about 10 minutes later.

At 23:00 the lights were dimmed.

Well looking back on Act One, Scene One, service was efficient but minimal. The FAs worked hard and were as friendly and as obliging as always. But it did all seem a bit hurried. Elite (or Deluxe) used to be better than this.

The Elite cabin is small - seat maps can be found on EVA's website. Just 2 toilets at the bottom of each aisle. You cannot access the other aisle without walking through a curtain into Economy or Premium Laurel. There are enough toilets provided people from Economy don't use them. The system breaks down a bit once the people in the front of Economy realise that their nearest toilet is just the otherside of a curtain. EVA do try and stop this - new signs have started appearing on the toilets "Elite pax only". The FAs do a good job keeping them clean and that applies equally to the economy toilets too.

Seats in Elite are wider than Economy and have a 38" pitch. You should be untroubled by your neighbour encroaching on your space. If you're in an aisle, it is still possible to have an elbow or shoulder knocked. There is a generous recline but the seat moves forward as it reclines so if the guy in front of you goes to max recline it's not too troubling. A table folds out from the armrest so eating is a more civilised affair than in Economy. There is 8.4" VOD, but better still - laptop power supplied at 110v via a dual Euro/US style socket. I considered watching "The Taking of Pelham 123" on the VOD, but instead did some work, then began to watch a film I'd loaded onto my laptop then fell asleep. The VOD system is no KrisFlyer, but does have a range of recent western films, asian stuff, music and games. The screen is on the back of the seat or divider in front of you. The system is a bit ropey and I have seen it crash.

Throughout the night, the FAs made regular trips around with a tray of apple juice/orange juice/water. I didn't see them offer any snacks this time or notice any left out in the galley, but I might have missed this whilst asleep. Previously they've offered ham rolls, chicken ceasar wraps etc. Of course if I'd asked I'm sure they would have rustled something up, if only nuts.

14:00 (BKK time) the lights came on for Scene Two. Again no towel service. 30 minutes later straight into the second meal service.

This time it was "omlette/sausage/potato" or "chicken noodle". I went for the chicken noodle. It also came with a salad, roll and butter and a pot of Yeo Valley apricot organic yoghurt. They don't offer alcohol during this meal service, but will always give it if asked. I just went for coffee.

We started descent at around 15:00 and were at the gate early at 15:30 (scheduled 15:45). On arrival all pax must deplane and there is a crew change.

INTERMISSION - BKK
As you get off you are given a rather large laminated transit card, but you do need to keep what's left of your BP. I suppose the transit card is a backup plus gives the ground staff a chance of shepherding disorientated pax. You now go through BKK security before going upstairs to the EVA lounge. At the X-ray, the security lady asked to "borrow" my bottle. She showed it to an elderly British couple. They were rather irate - they'd bought some whiskey at LHR and not had it properly sealed. Security wanted to confiscate it. The guy was having none of it and said he would return to the plane with it. The security guy said he couldn't do that, but seemed unwilling to stop him trying. BKK security thanked me for helping out, not that I had done much.

I arrived in the EVA lounge at 15:45. As I mentioned, in Elite class you must hold a silver card or above to access an EVA lounge. They don't seem to mind golds bringing in a guest, though I think technically this is only permitted at TPE. (No problem for Diamonds). I sometimes do this if I meet a nice person who is TPE bound. I like this lounge - nice views, good grub, friendly staff. I stuffed myself in the limited time available - some dumplings, tuna sandwiches, pizza, orange juice, coffee, noodles, some things on sticks, fruit. Sadly they didn't have any pad thai or chicken green curry that I've previously seen. Nice clean toilets too - plus a shower if you want it. Checked my email using the wireless LAN. Previously I've found this lounge a little warm, but this time it was pleasantly cool.

As I left the lounge, the receptionist helpfully pointed out that I didn't need to leave quite yet. The early arrival at BKK was unusual and I realised I didn't need to pig down the food so quickly. But I fancied walking off some of my over-indulgence. I arrived at the gate just as priority boarding started at 16:50. They have two doors from the gate to the walkway. One is for priority boarding only, which means that if you arrive after mainstream boarding has started you can still "queue jump". Priority boarding is for Premium Laurel, Golds and Diamonds only, though sometimes they say "Business class only".

ACT TWO - BKK-TPE
I returned to 22H. We pushed back at 17:20, bang on time.

Not only do the crew change, but so do most of the passengers. Gone are most of the Brits - they go only as far as BKK. They are replaced by Americans going home connecting via TPE and Taiwanese and Thais travelling between BKK and TPE.

This sector is about 3hrs 30mins gate to gate. Elite was full, Economy and Premium Laurel probably about 75% full. Again no towel run or drink on cruising.

But a deputy purser did come over to "welcome Mr Jimbo" aboard, and knowing that I was a gold card passenger would be happy to hear my request if there was anything I wanted. I just find it very peculiar. I wonder exactly what I could ask for without annoying them. Free tickets next time around? A meal from the PL menu? A discrete espresso instead of the filter coffee? I think the point is that onboard I'm generally happy with the service and don't believe it's fair to demand extras because of status. Where I do need "help" is pre-flight - ie getting availability or getting my favourite seats allocated.

An hour into the flight, the meal service started. Again fish/potato or chicken/rice. I was surprised that in 3 meal services on this flight there was no pork (except for the sausage with the omlette), beef or seafood dish.

I opted for fish again. It was different in style to before, but essentially still fish, potato and carrots. Also served: fruit, roll and butter, salad (I think with a fish sauce) and blackcurrent cheesecake. Perfectly decent stuff in quality and quantity. Although the main dish comes in a plastic dish and the tray is plastic, other dishes are chinaware. You also get proper glassware and a chinaware cup. Knives and forks are plastic though - on all sectors.

Red or white wine (same as before) or the usual range of soft drinks/beers. The FAs returned to clear trays and offer top ups and/or tea/coffee. Then a later run for more coffee/tea.

We started descent at 21:10 and were at the gate at 21:50, bang on time.

Arrivals
I was in immigration at 22:00 and the baggage hall at 22:10 just as my priority-tagged suitcase came out. I spotted the couple I had seen at BKK earlier. They still had their bottle - apparently whilst trying to get back to the plane the guy met an EVA FA who remembered him with it and passed it to an incoming FA who stowed it on board before returning it to him on arrival.

I was into arrivals by 22:15, just 25 minutes after we arrived at the gate.

Conclusion
I suppose Act Two was slightly better - the FAs were a bit more attentive and cheerful. I know that the LHR-BKK/BKK-LHR sectors are unpopular amongst FAs. They are often busy and the pax quite demanding ("git us annuvva beer - it's free innit?"). BKK-TPE is a more pleasant experience for crews and pax alike.

All-in-all another efficient service from EVA but some of the little extras often seen in Elite were missing from this flight - and of course some of them (eg wet towel) are common in Economy services with other airlines.

Having said that, the FAs remain friendly, ground handling efficient and in over 10 years flying BR67/68 I've never had a cancellation and only once a significant delay (that was 4 hours). 2-4-2 + 38" means I'm comfortable, and laptop power means I can work/amuse myself. 3-4-3 + 33" in economy means I'm not and I can't. ]]> Trip Reports jimbo99 http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-reports/1016552-eva-airways-br68-lhr-bkk-tpe-premium-economy.html Air France, First Class, CDG - JNB - CDG, 777-300 http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-reports/1016368-air-france-first-class-cdg-jnb-cdg-777-300-a.html Thu, 12 Nov 2009 02:52:50 GMT *AF990 CDG-JNB Northern Hemisphere Spring 2009 777-300 Seat 2A* Check-in was smooth. Since I was transferring from a Lufthansa flight from FRA, I needed to take the train over to the AF terminal 2E - swift and efficient. I went to door 12... AF990 CDG-JNB
Northern Hemisphere Spring 2009
777-300
Seat 2A

Check-in was smooth. Since I was transferring from a Lufthansa flight from FRA, I needed to take the train over to the AF terminal 2E - swift and efficient. I went to door 12 and was welcomed into the first class waiting area by 2 men. One took my passport and went to get my boarding pass, while the other got me a glass of water and made some idle chat. Once the boarding pass was delivered, the man who got me the water walked me over to the security check, bypassing the lines (not that there were many lines at this time of day). We then went to the lounge.

The first class lounge in terminal 2E is very nice indeed. To access it, one takes one of 2 lifts and is then met by one of the hostesses. The man who accompanied me gave me a tour of the lounge, pointing out the bar, restaurant area, showers, loo, resting area, etc. He then left. As I had a several-hour wait, I started reading and killed some time wandering around the terminal. I also had lunch, and was assisted by a VERY helpful young man (mid-20's or so) who really knew the food and was able to suggest a nice wine to go with it. I was very, very, very impressed with the staff in the lounge.

I took a shower, and they provided Plaza Athénée toiletries (shampoo, conditioner, body wash, etc.). One thing I've noticed in all airline lounge showers: They never have an exhaust fan, so everything gets steamed up, including the mirror. This one was no exception. Also, the way the shower was designed, there was no shower door, so there was no way one could not get water all over the floor during one’s ablutions unless one simply stood still under the cascading waterfall, and didn't use soap or shampoo or move or inhale or exhale. But it looked good. So it was French, I guess; the water-version of a YSL suit – looks good, limited functionality. I’m just joking (not really) :) :) :) The shower room looked less good when I was done, but, then, when I was done, I looked good. Go on. Imagine it. Imagine me naked. Stop it, you pigs.

I have my modesty.

Anyway, about an hour before we were due to board, a woman introduced herself to me and let me know that we'd be walking over to the gate (vs. driving), since it was only 100 metres away. I asked if first would be full, and she said she thought so. About 1/2 hour later she found me to let me know that it was indeed full for the flight. I appreciated her following up - not that I cared that much, but it seemed very conscientious of her to have remembered. About 15 minutes before we were due to walk over (there would be 5 of us), I decided to head over on my own, since I was getting lounge fever and really needed to get out of there. I informed one of the lounge attendants, who immediately found a man to escort me to the plane. I said that there was no need, as they looked very busy (and they *were* very busy), but they insisted. I thanked them, and we made our way over to the gate. There was a line for boarding with over 3 million people in it (I counted), but we walked around to the side and were let through, and boarded. I was welcomed by the crew (2 men, 1 of whom was the purser), and I took my seat. I was offered champagne (which was yummy). There was 1 man working the first class cabin, and one person (I'm not sure who) working the galley. As has been pointed out on the Air France board, there were only 2 entrees available, which wasn't very impressive. However the food itself was great, I thought (though others disagree with me). The massage function of the seat was broken on this flight, however I didn't care, as the seat still turned into a bed. :)

My first fully negative note, and I mean it: In seat 2A, well behind 1A, the cabin smells like the lav, and I mean the lav after someone did a number 2. I'll leave it at that. I can't believe you all made me mention this. But you begged for it.

First class had one man working/serving the cabin, which wasn't too difficult, even though first was full, as even full there are only 8 people in the cabin, so the ratio was no different than LH 330s/340s, and LX 330s/340s, which have 1 attendant serving the cabin, or LH 744s which have 2 attendants serving 16 pax. The guy working the cabin did a very good job, really hustling to keep drinks topped up, food service moving, etc. I was impressed, especially after my first terrible experiences on AF in first class in late 2005 (JNB-CDG-IAD). Service wasn't as polished as LH/LX first class, but it was much better than I expected based on my own experience as well as comments I've read. And the whole meal was completed 2 hours after takeoff, which I liked, as sometimes on LH the meal can easily be 3+ hours. UA just throws their junk at you and turns the lights off. But I digress.

After the meal, I watched some episodes of some show with Glenn Close (I forgot the name), and then fell asleep. The seats, to me, are VERY very comfortable, and the aisle-side armrest can be moved down to add a couple of inches to the width, and I slept all the way until breakfast.

We landed at JNB a few minutes early, but, of course, at the far eastern runway, which is practically located in Swaziland, so we taxied for 4 days to our stand at the new international terminal. From there we made the minor trek to the immigration zoo with the exceptionally surly and perpetually bad-mooded staff, and then the baggage claim zoo. Luggage was delivered 40 minutes after landing. The nifty thing was that after baggage claim, one is now deposited into the new international arrivals area, which is, frankly, breathtaking, especially in light of what it used to be. JNB is looking good for 2010.

Let's just hope the Gautrain is ready as well.

AF995 JNB-CDG
Northern Hemisphere Spring 2009
777-300
Seat 2A

This was another good flight, though the baggage allowance for first class was flummoxing. I went to check in and was greeted by the ubiquitous scale lady (most airlines at JNB have your baggage weighed before you can proceed to check-in).
She didn't weigh mine. She directed me to the first class check-in counter, however the first class counter had a "closed" sign on it; behind the sign was a woman who was just sitting there. So I returned to the scale lady and she found a manager who explained that the computer was broken at the first class desk, and she walked me over to an economy desk that had no customers at it. Air France only allows 40 kilos of luggage for first class (unless one has SkyTeam status, which I don't). The first bag was 22 kilos, and the guy let it go. The second had 23.7 kilos, at which point he told me I had to remove 4 kilos. I asked how much it would be to pay the extra, and he told me I had to ask the scale lady. So I went back and asked, and was told it was ZAR 400 per kilo. No way was I going to pay that, as the total would have been close to USD 180, which struck me as a complete and total rip-off. So I took 4 kilos of books out of the suitcase, placed them in my rollaboard, and we were all set to go. What vexed me, and still does, is that AF still ended up carrying the weight, but they did it by making the passenger lug it vs. putting it in the hold. Fine, life's short, etc. Then it was off to the AF lounge.

The lounge is just really one large room. One is greeted at the desk upon entry, and then one can go wherever one likes.
There is a TV area, a quiet area (or what looked like one), a sclerotic selection of food, decent selection of drinks and crisps, wi-fi included upon entry, etc. Overall, though, the color scheme was dour and depressing, and I couldn't wait to board. But I had 2 hours to kill. So I checked email, read a bit, and then walked down to the gate.

The new terminal at JNB is nice (at least I like it, though many others disagree). Considering that this is Johannesburg, the fact that it's nice is in and of itself surprising. Anyway, boarding started at 19:05, with business/first class as well as SkyTeam status holders boarding through the left door, with everyone else boarding through the right door. The 2 lines are separated all the way to the plane, so everyone on the left enters the plane from door 1L, and everyone on the right enters from door 2L, just in front of the wing. The good thing about this is that those flying in first class don't have to look at those flying in steerage. The bad thing is that those in first class still have to look at those flying in business class. But we persevere and stay strong until boarding completes. It turns out that there are only 2 of us in first class; business class looked to be about 1/3 full.

Oh, yes. Same lav smell in 2A again. See southbound report above for more detail and an insult.

After pushback and takeoff (to the south, which I hate, as it always adds a few minutes to the flight, and I'm always in a hurry, because I'm very self-important and busy), 2 flight attendants closed the curtains separating business from first, and closed the hole in the middle wall that's open during takeoff and landing. Then the flight attendant working first (she was wonderful, btw) served us drinks, followed by dinner. Once again, the food was tasty and I enjoyed it thoroughly. I then took a walk around the plane, noting the bar area at the middle of business class near door 2L. Not extensive certainly, however it would do in a pinch.

After supper, I purchased a couple of items from duty-free, and had an Armagnac and went to sleep – the massage function worked this time. I awoke for breakfast before we landed at CDG.

Upon arriving at CDG, it turned out that only 1 jetway was working, and it was connected to door 2L, forcing the 2 of us in first class to look at the business class seats on the way out. I remained strong. I also heard my name paged. When I got to the door, I asked why they had announced my name, and it turned out that there were 2 women waiting for the 2 of us from first. They took us into the jetway, and then down a flight of stairs in the rain to a waiting van. The van dropped off one of the ladies and me at a transiting area where there were buses to take me between terminal 2E and terminal 1. The lady waited with me until my bus arrived, and I was off to my connecting flight on Lufthansa in terminal 1. I didn't want to use the arrivals service, but I wondered what would have happened if I did. I shall never know. I did get to see the AF Concorde thingy on the way to the LH terminal, which was neato.

Overall, I was very pleased with this flight and the on-the-ground assistance I received at CDG. I only wish someone could have helped me figure out terminal 1, as it is poorly signed and, frankly, quite confusing. But that has nothing to do with AF, anyway. ]]> Trip Reports TravelinWilly http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-reports/1016368-air-france-first-class-cdg-jnb-cdg-777-300-a.html New Swiss First Class: DUS-ZRH-ORD / ORD-ZRH-ORD (A333) http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-reports/1016075-new-swiss-first-class-dus-zrh-ord-ord-zrh-ord-a333.html Wed, 11 Nov 2009 12:06:55 GMT First of, please take my apologies for not being an English native speaker. I hope you are going to enjoy my travel report anyways :) Back in August my wife and I were booked on the nonstop flight from DUS-ORD on the LH A340-300. Nonstop is... First of, please take my apologies for not being an English native speaker. I hope you are going to enjoy my travel report anyways :)

Back in August my wife and I were booked on the nonstop flight from DUS-ORD on the LH A340-300. Nonstop is always the preferable way to fly – especially since our 1 1/2 year old daughter were traveling with us.
But then I heard that Swiss would fly ZRH-ORD with their new Airbus 330-300 for a limited only and that it would be still the case on the dates of our trip.

Since LH has a quite poor First Class product I took the risk of annoying my daughter with 2 extra take-offs and landings. Especially the latter often causes pain in infants ears.

Let me state it mildly: it was worth it. But see for yourself!

Düsseldorf has a special First Class check-in

Usually it is very empty here, this day was exceptionally crowded ;)

The essential things

Lufthansa Senator lounge (No First Class lounge in DUS). Nice place to wait, but far from being something special. Pretty crowded, too.

Onboard our A320 to ZRH in Business

Welcome to the Swiss First Class lounge

Reception desk

Very spacious and designed in a great way

I was impressed by their book shelf ;-) , but the wine offering was a bit underwhelming, nothing special here.

A personal assistant walked another passenger and us to a special security line

We were then brought to the International Terminal by car (Mercedes V with a nice interior)

On our way to the Int. terminal. I was a bit irritated that we then had to go through security again. Afterwards there was no limo-service to the plane. We entered through the front finger and turned left :D

Our seats: 2D and 2 G

The First cabin is awesome! Very spacious with a great design

Being in this cabin feels like being in a private jet. Only 8 seats available, 5 were taken...

...

...

MORE TO COME... ]]> Trip Reports Treppenhauer http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-reports/1016075-new-swiss-first-class-dus-zrh-ord-ord-zrh-ord-a333.html 16 April 2009 at 6 a.m.: Hong Kong Airport http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-reports/1016025-16-april-2009-6-m-hong-kong-airport.html Wed, 11 Nov 2009 06:33:36 GMT In this great, this massive, bunker-city of an airport I began to reminisce about my mother’s coming out to Australia in 1974 in her 70th year and going through a similar series of airports to the ones I would see in this trip. She came to hold my... In this great, this massive, bunker-city of an airport I began to reminisce about my mother’s coming out to Australia in 1974 in her 70th year and going through a similar series of airports to the ones I would see in this trip. She came to hold my hand, so to speak, while I was going through my divorce after eight years in a first marriage. She told me she took a small flagon of whisky to help her cope with the exigencies of the trip from Toronto Canada to Launceston Tasmania. I could also not help reflect, during that flight from Melbourne to Hong Kong and especially as the plane flew over Broken Hill, Tennant Creek and Darwin that I had not flown in that region for 23 years. Such a lot of water under the bridge since then, nearly all of my middle age and the first years of late adulthood.

During that flight from Melbourne to Hong Kong I was sandwiched between a charming young woman aged 32 and my wife. All flights, except first class, are sandwich experiences and they have been that way since my first experience of travel by air in 1967 at the age of 23. I only slept for four hours during that first night-flight. This attractive woman who was going to be with her husband in Switzerland helped to occupy the time. She had an MA in Italian with a specialization in sociolinguistics. We had a good chat about her course and many other subjects in life and academia. We also talked about he Bahá'í Faith en passant since she asked several questions I told her I was going to the Baha'i WorldCentre in Israel. The conversation was so engaging that I wrote the following poem:

It’s thanks to Roger that this poem
goes the way it does as I fantasize
a courtship, quite brief, a marriage—
now there’s the rub—an aborted
fantasy in its opening phases and
such a charming woman, far too
late and simply does not fit into
her lifespan or mine—what one
calls our life-narrative, the story
of our lives which can really only
go in one direction--fantasies and
dreams a bonus for life’s periphery
or, as that Bard once said: “these
dreams are the children of an idle
brain begot of nothing but vain fantasy
which is as thin of substance as the air
and more inconstant than the wind,
which woos.”

Here at the age of 65 I sit with life
whizzing by to its final hour of my
recorded time and with this world
religion in its fifth epoch and a
dozen years to go before the end
of the first century of its Formative
Age, a Formative Age so very unlike
the Greek age by the same name.
I travel to the BWC to renew and
reinvigorate the focus, the new focus,
that has emerged in the last decade,
in this new millennium—spreading
the teachings over the internet with
time out occasionally for fantasies,
the engagement in an insistent and
concupiscible appetite and many
sleeps due to an anti-psychotic
and anti-depressant medication
keeping me nicely contained to
do this job for a Cause I have
been a part of for half a century. ]]> Trip Reports RonPrice http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-reports/1016025-16-april-2009-6-m-hong-kong-airport.html De-DO-De-Da De-MOW-DO-Trip-report http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-reports/1015866-de-do-de-da-de-mow-do-trip-report.html Tue, 10 Nov 2009 21:38:18 GMT As i joined at OSL, I missed the US events, but my-oh-my – there was plenty left to enjoy.

Got up early and had breakfast at Radisson Blu, where I spent the night after arriving from my corporate HQ at Mosjøen the night before. Snow was falling and it was obvious that the deicing folks would be kept busy this November morning,

After getting my boardingpass and meeting some of the other participants, we proceeded to the gate, from where we were bussed over to the SAS Hangar where the first event would take place.

From the hangar, we could see D-ABON touch down on the snowy runwa.y

SAS put a great effort into making this a great event, with folk dance, food&drink, exhibitions and several interesting speakers. SAS Flight Attendent Kristin also impressed with her singing – especially the second song performed on the wing of a Boeing 737-705. She seemed very comfortable on that stage.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sVmdl-1XnTI

One of our excellent hosts wanted a good angle for some shots.

The same 737 was converted to MEDEVAC configuration to demonstrate how SAS assists to bring wounded citizens out of disaster areas or warzones. It was NOT the new Business Class.

Tommy777 testing the emergency slide.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yr326wZWJbc

Time to board.

Undersigned about to climb on board.

El Condor Pasa. This thing is LONG. I have a long standing relationship to the 757-300 through my days with ATA. I love this plane!

No, it’s not Transformers. Time for deicing.

Ah – 18 year old Talisker ...

Cabin service was smooth – if not elegant. At lest they didn’t have to collect cash!

]]> Trip Reports LN-MOW http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-reports/1015866-de-do-de-da-de-mow-do-trip-report.html